KAY Cannon’s screenplay lets down this on-campus chick flick in several ways, notably its treatment of university life. And director Jason Moore lets it pass unchallenged when demanding a tighter script might have enhanced the film’s impact.

At Barden U, the Bellas, the women’s a cappella choral group, has failed to win the state championship. Freshman Beca (Anna Kendrick) takes little persuasion to join them. Aubrey (Anna Camp) rules the Bellas with an iron hand. None of the chicks, not even Fat Amy (bigly-built Rebel Wilson) from Tasmania has the courage to confront her.

Singing and choreography sustain the film better than the rest of it deserves. But the cultural pitch of the songs the groups perform is not perfect.

Without Wilson’s contribution, delivering sharp one-liners with panache, “Pitch Perfect” would struggle to find validity. Satirising the craft of her trade, Elizabeth Banks as a TV commentator delivers platitudes about competitions with agreeably annoying style. The young men singing for Barden U are jocks of the most fatuous kind. But they do sound good.

Done well, a capella is a delightful musical genre, disciplined sound that invites the listener to overlook the absence of instrumental support. Whether any creative activity deserves a competitive face is hard to justify. At the peak of their careers, the Swingle Singers delivered delectable a capella that might have delighted composers such as Bach, Mozart, Beethoven and others. When we are not hearing singing, “Pitch Perfect” doesn’t persuade us of its worth.

At all cinemas